Wednesday, April 5, 2017

My
thanks to Lisabet for hosting me today. It’s a real pleasure to be
here.

After
I finished the second book in the Beguiling Bachelor series,
Beholden, I took a long vacation, enjoyed the holidays, and
soon two months had gone by and I had not written a word. Time to get
back to work.

So
I sat at the computer but nothing came. Nothing. Day after day,
Nothing.

We
all have those days, or weeks, or months

Writer’s
Block is nothing unique, of course. The famous author Joyce Carol
Oates is quoted as saying “I don’t think writer’s block exists
really. I think that when you are trying to do something prematurely,
it just won’t come.” This from a highly prolific writer who
probably never missed a deadline in her life.

I
self publish, so my deadlines are completely self-imposed. I wonder
often if that makes this process easier – after all no one is
breathing down my neck – or harder. I am known to crack the whip on
myself much harder than I would on others.

I
think of Hannah Ford, best-selling author whose “Because He Owns
Me” and “What he Wants” sagas spanned 22 books and 10 books
respectively and are still going strong. Ms. Ford published her
stories as frequently as 6 weeks apart. Granted, they are generally
shorter in length than my Bachelor novels, but they are also top
selling, compelling stories and her readers clamor for more. I
needed to channel her energy for a while.

What finally worked?

I
wrote two prior novels in this series, plus a prequel, so I thought I
knew my characters inside out. But, I was still heavily invested in
Randall and Sloane from Beholden. They were dear friends now
while Alex and Charlotte were just acquaintances. My new characters
were people I had alluded to in prior books, but never take the time
to get to know.

So
I went back to basics. I interviewed them. I stopped to understand
their fears and secrets , what motivated them. I asked myself more
about how they lived day to day because for me, plot always follows
characters, never the reverse. When I know my hero, I know how he
will behave and what actions he will take. When I know my sassy
leading lady, I know how she will react to a caress, whether she will
make the first move on her handsome millionaire or wait for him to
pounce.

I
figured out if Alex looked like Ryan Reynolds or more like Ryan
Gosling. I will give you a hint: it’s neither. Was Charlotte more
Kim Kardashian or Kim Bassinger? Neither again, but you get the idea.
I documented their lives, clipped pictures of their homes and clothes
from magazines, even sketched a few floor plans for Alex’s
luxurious condominium. I got acquainted with them – intimately
acquainted.

I
know how he kisses, I know how she likes to be touched. I remember
how they met and their instant attraction. I know now he has a quick
mind, and she can be a little too independent. They are
three-dimensional characters to me finally.

Once
I knew them, the words flowed, and flowed. And so, today, I am able
to offer you the third book in the Beguiling Bachelor series, the
newly released, Bedeviled, starring Alex and Charlotte.

Contest!

Want
to get to know the Beguiling Bachelor characters better too?

Four
lucky winners will win all three ebooks in the series, Bedazzled,
Beholden and Bedeviled. Use the Rafflecopter widget at the end of this post to enter!

Blurb

Charlotte is on
the run...

Charlotte Roche escaped
dangers lurking in Boston by accepting a job in Chicago. A new name,
a new beginning - all built on lies. Thinking she is safe, Charlotte
drops her guard and sets her sights on her ruggedly handsome and
wildly sexy running partner, Alexander Gaines. Can she advance their
relationship from the track to the bedroom and still maintain her
charade, or will Alex's probing questions pierce her carefully
rehearsed story?

Alex, with unrevealed
secrets of his own, struggles to hold the irresistible Charlotte at
arm’s length. But when Charlotte sustains a suspicious injury, Alex
seizes the opportunity to cuddle up to the sassy beauty. Does he dare
risk his reputation, his fortune, his friends, and his heart?

With exposure imminent,
they appeal to their friends for help. Join Alex and Charlotte, along
with characters you’ve met and loved in “Bedazzled” and
“Beholden”, as they tackle the maze of half-truths and cover-ups
threatening the lovers.

How
can they build a bond with deceit on both sides? With malevolent
forces advancing, is their love Bedeviled?

This
is the third book in the Beguiling Bachelors series of steamy
contemporary romances.

Excerpt

“You
look so beautiful,” he told her in a husky voice. “I have been
wanting to do this all night.”

His
head lowered to hers, pulling her close against him as he leaned back
until all her weight was leaning on his and she had no choice but to
twine her arms behind his head or the tree trunk. His lips captured
her slowly, softly pressing against hers. One hand rested low, on the
curve between her back and her behind. The other came up to tangle in
her short hair, holding her head still as he deepened the kiss. His
lips demanded response, plundering her mouth with his tongue. He
tasted of expensive wine and Alex as his tongue explored the recesses
of her mouth, hot and insistent. Her breasts were flattened against
his rock-hard chest, her hips tight against his as he held her to
him.

When
he lifted his head, shadowed by moonlight behind him, Charlotte was
unable to read his expression. Unsure and unsteady, she waited,
catching her breath. Blood was coursing through her veins, hot and
urgent. Her heart was pounding from just one kiss.

“God,
I want you,” he rasped, the words torn from him, raw and insistent
before he dipped his head to kiss her again. She returned the kiss,
opening her lips to his insistent ones, entwining her tongue with
his, increasing the pressure against his mouth as she ran her hands
up into his hair. She held fast, feeling his hand move from her hair
to the nape of her neck, down along her bare arms, tracing a pattern
there with his fingers. The feel of his hands on her skin was warm,
strong and sure. She had longed for his touch and now desired it
everywhere.

Alex
lifted his head reluctantly. “If we don’t get back in that car
now,” he told her, his voice hoarse with longing, “I will not be
responsible for my actions.”

He
lifted her away from his body. She felt bereft without the solid
warmth of him hard against her. He opened her car door and closed it
again, without allowing her inside. Instead, he pushed her gently
against it.

“Sorry,
I can’t make it home without one more.” Alex took Charlotte’s
mouth in a searing kiss that took her breath away, sucking her lower
lip into his mouth then sliding his tongue over it and into the
moistness of her mouth. He kissed her senseless until she would have
happily made love there in the sand, and the world be damned. She
wanted this man as she had never wanted anything before.

Charlotte
kissed him passionately, running her hands up and down his muscular
back as she tightened her hold on him, wanting to get closer, to feel
his bare skin, until finally they mutually agreed to some restraint.

“Jeez,”
he stated with a rough chuckle, “I hope there are no cops out,
cause I am planning to break speed records getting you home.”

Madison
Michael, a native Chicagoan with a background in IT, is the
author of two other “Beguiling Bachelor” novels. Bedazzled
is set among the art fairs that flavor Chicago summers, and Beholden
spans the glamor of lakefront houses and the glitter of downtown.
After living in New England, the southeast and California, Maddy
loves paying homage to her Midwest roots.

Madison,
a member of Romance Writers of America, lives in Evanston IL with her
feline editorial assistant and a great view of the Chicago skyline.
When she is not writing, she binge watches TV, binge reads novels and
binges on Chicago’s famous cuisine.